Player Character: Pokemon Fire Red
by berober
Summary: What if video games were treated as movies? What if the NPCs of these game worlds are just actors acting out the scene for the Player Character. This is what this story is about, an oblivious player character's journey through various games, firstly PKMN


This world we live in, we are in awe of the cinema, of the theatre and of the interactive. We crave the story and the emotion of the story. But of the three aspects of media listed above, there is one that differs, the interactive. The 'Video Game'. We can distinguish cinema and theatre by the known fact that the characters portrayed are actors, and outside of the stage, or the screen, they go about their normal lives, with the interactive, the characters we see will continue to lead that life after we have moved on. However, let us assume that all three styles of media above were equal in their idea of 'off-screen', that when the audience is not watching, these characters resume normal jobs and lives. Of course that would not be too hard to imagine, after all, in the video games that we play, we only live what we play, the character is designed not to notice anything he doesn't see, like an audience watching a film or play. If we took that one step further, then the character that the player controls is ignorant of the world outside of his perspective, he is oblivious to the actors being anything other than the characters they play. This is the setting of this story, and of any future stories I may make.

**Pokemon Fire Red**

"Okay, we will be rolling in 10 minutes, so get into places and get ready for the cameras to start rolling. We're going for a crane shot all the way through this so make sure to keep all cameras up high, the character won't have the ability to look up." The director cried out, and all around he could hear the sighs of relief from the crew, it was always tougher when they had to have a dynamic camera, too risky that the player character, the PC, would notice them. Of course they're never noticed, but it only takes one mistake for the game world to start to crumble around them.

"Hello there, glad to meet you! Welcome to the world of Pokemon!" Professor Oak began, the game had begun, and as soon as the formalities in the introduction were over, it would be action and everyone would be thrust into action.

"Now tell me, are you a boy or a girl?" he continued, this being the first of three choices that would be made in this short time. The PC didn't hesitate in selecting the former.

"Let's begin with your name, what is it?" Oak continued...

Daniel Mason had been a struggling game actor for quite some time, he hadn't really had a hit since games went to three dimensions, so to be chosen for the role of Professor Oak in the original Pokemon game was a huge break, and he hadn't realised how much of a hit it would end up being, and just how vital this 'Professor Oak' would become, but he had seen this all before, and something about uttering those lines again just felt right. He had to hold back a smile while the PC chose his name, for this was seen as a homecoming to him, a final thank you from the director after he was passed over in Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire.

"Right... so your name is James?" Oak asked, thinking back through all the games he had starred in, all the names he had confirmed, and all the Pokemon and Pokedexes he had given out.

"This is my grandson, he's been your rival since you both were babies. ...Erm, what was his name now?"

This line had always amused him, he suggested this back when they were writing the script, and the crew all had a good laugh about it and decided they had nothing to lose by putting it in, they had to include a line to name the rival somehow.

"...Er, was it Gary? That's right! I remember now, his name is Gary!" Oak said, feigning like he remembered. In all honesty, he was a bit tired of the familiar Ash and Gary names that had dominated in the early years. He knew that the audience loved those names, but he wished that they would be able to look past that when this game came around. Nevertheless, he soldiered on, delivering the last few lines with the dedication and experience that he was known for as Daniel Mason. He knew that as soon as he finished this final line, the game would begin, and he would enjoy his retirement afterwards well.

"Right, cut to bedroom, and in 3, 2, 1, Action." The director called. This would be the last thing said across the whole game world before the PC, before James appeared. Any mistakes would now have to be dealt with by those who made them, or by crew members when the PC wasn't watching.

And just like that, James was there, the game of Pokemon had begun and James' world would begin to revolve, and unknown to him, revolve around him. This would be his story.

Everything looked familiar to James, as it should be. To him, he'd been living here for 10 years. He walked over to his computer, and logged on. While waiting he looked at the books lined up on the shelf next to the desk, all memories from as he grew up. There was a photo of the first time he went down to the edge of the ocean with his mom and watched the Tentacool crawl in the shimmering water beneath. By the time he looked back, the computer had logged on. Going right to the item management system, he took out a potion. He had found this potion in a bush near the top of the town once, he was too little at the time to notice what it was for, but now he knew. Some trainer coming to see the revered Professor Oak must have dropped it, possibly to hold a super potion or maybe even a hyper potion. He had never seen one of those, but he hoped that he would see one on his adventures. With all that sorted, he turned off the computer and headed downstairs.

"Okay Jenny, just as we rehearsed. When he starts to leave, stop him and give him his running shoes... oh crap, here he comes." The director muttered to Jenny, who had been chosen to play James's mom. It was her first major role, and replacing the original mom was no mean feat. She was starting to sweat and her breath started rasping. The thuds of the feet on the staircase were getting closer, Jenny took a deep breath and looked straight ahead.

James looked towards his mom, who had cared for him for 10 years, smiled, and walked to the exit. Reaching the door, he turned to his mom and walked towards her.

"A-all boys grow up someday..." Jenny managed to let out of her mouth. James knew she was nervous about him leaving so he just smiled and left for the door.

"What was that?" The director cried out, although quietly, "you were meant to give him the Running Shoes."

"I froze, I'm sorry!" Jenny replied, she began to worry that she was going to be fired for this.

"Look, it's fine, we all have to start somewhere. We'll just have one of the aides give him the shoes in Pewter City. All you need to worry about is healing him should he come home at any time." The director sympathised. He knew what it was like to be nervous and screw up a game, his first game was E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.


End file.
